Centrifugal liquid extractor



Dec. 15, 1942. c. G. KEITH CENTRIFUGAL LIQUID ExTR'AToR 2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Sept. 19, 1958 Figure. l

CLINTON G. KEITH nventor Gttvrneg Dec. l5, 1942. C, G, KE|TH CENTRIFUGAL LIQUID ExTRAcToR Filed sept. 19,' 1958' 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ooooooo oo oooooo ooooooo ooooooopo oooooaoo oo oo oo o no. o oo o OUD 0 ooo o lll m D U l bijl. Y .--i

. 2?; :o 25 2@ [ll/[llll/zllllllIlll/l//lll//l CLINTON G. KEITH` l'mventor attorney Patented Dec. 415, 1942 UNITED t STATES PATIENT OFFICE CENTRIFUGAL LIQUID EXTRACTOB Clinton G. Keith, Yakima, Wash.

Application September 19, 1938, Serial No. 230,619

6 Claims.

This invention relates to acentrifugal liquid extractor and has been particularly designed for the reduction of solid vegetable and fruit matter to a pulp and the subsequent extraction and separation of the liquid matter from the reduced and disrupted cell structure, whereby beneficial fruit and vegetable juices may be produced, together with the production of a pulp residue having an extremely low moisture content.

Currently, dieticians and specialists in the field of medicine are encc iraging the adoption of diets largely composed of liquids extracted from vegetables, such as carrots, beets, celery, etc., and from fruits such as apples and the like. The efllcacy of such juices depends upon their availability in an extremely fresh state. Repeated tests have confirmed the fact that fruit juices within a very few hours after their extraction from the mass comprising their normal raw state will dissipate through volatilization the majority of the desirable characteristics, namely, vitamins, etc. The freshly extracted juices' produced by my machine contain allv of the healthful food properties of' the original fruit and are marked by a total ab sence of discoloration which. results from oxidation and a bouquet or aroma not present after the cookery extraction or cooking is maintained and carried over into the fresh Juices. It should be apparent that the extraction of auch Juices as has been mentioned herein should be closely coupled with the time at. which such juices are to be consumed.

It has therefore been a prime object of my invention to design a centrifugal extractor capable oi' being manufactured at a low cost, for sale as a household appliance for use in the home, diet kitchen, restaurant, and lunch counter.

Another object of my invention has been to provide a machine pf this type which successively tear and disrupt the cells of the vegetable and fruit matter through an extractor to the end that a continuous operation results;

Another object of my .invention has been the provision of a machine for centrifugal extraction of fruit and vegetable Juices, whereby the material passes through the machine rapidly and the juice is withdrawn at one outlet and thepulp discharged at another point to eliminate the tract juices is destroyed and disrupted by impact, as compared with the majority of extraction methods that comprise cutting knives.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and in which like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughout the same,

Figure 1 is an elevational view of the device of my invention;

Figure 2 is a vertical. sectional view through the machine, taken on lines 2--2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a plan view of one form of the shredder of my invention; n

Figure 4 is a fragmentary section of a type of screen which may be utilized in an alternative form of my shredder of Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a fragmentary, elevational view of a portion of the housing;

Figure 6 is a fragmentary, sectional, elevational view through a portion of the revolving screen utilized in my device; and

Figure 7 is a perspective view of the spinner disk forming the base structure of my centrifugal extractor. f' l Referring now .to Figures 1 and 2, the numeral l0 designates` a of the device having upward and inward flaring side walls il; and number l2 indicates a bearing supporting housing adapted to carry the revolving mechanism of my invention. A motor I3 is mounted upon a horizontal base Il unitarily constructed as a part of the base Ill. An electric inlet cord Il is attached to the base wall Il through means of thel ferrule Il and is suitably connected by wires (not shown) to the motor il.

The central motor shaft I1 extends downwardly from the motor into the housing formedl within the walls I l and securely keyed thereto are pulleys Il and Il. Within the housing I2 I provide a flanged supporting bearing 2l in which is Journailed a tubular shaft 1|. Within the tubular shaft 2l is Journalled a smaller shaft 22 extending below and above the shaft Il. A pulley 2l is secured to the shaft 2l by means of the key I4 and a pulley 1I is secured to the shaft i2 by means of the key 2l. l The belt 21 transmits power from the pulley il to the pulley 23 and the belt 2l in the same manner transmits power from the pulley II to the pulley 25. It will be noted that the pulley 2i is drawn as slightly smaller than the pulley 23 to provide a differential 'in the rotation of the shafts 2| and 22, but it will, oi.' course, be understood that this differential may be accomplished by changing the sizes of pulleys I8 and I'S as well. The bearing 2l is supported between the upper plate Il and the lower plate Il, comprising the top.. and bottom of the housing I2.

A spinner plate Il is supported in a horizontal plane about the shaft 2l and the bushing 32 enof the material from which 'it is desirable to ex- 00 gages the shaft 2l and is keyed thereto by means of the lug or dog 33 engaging a notch 34 in the shaft.

For the purpose of shedding moisture and pulp the disk 3l may be provided with a cone 35 which also serves to maintain the bushing 32 in a fixed location and to relieve it from stresses and strains. 'I'he disk 3| is further provided with bosses 36 having 'pin heads 31. A bushing 38 encircles the upper portion of the shaft 22 and is secured thereto by means of the key 39. A spiral feeder and scraper means 40 is securely attached to the bushing 38 and is revolved with the turning of the ,shaft 22.

The shredder element of Figure 3 indicated as a whole by the numeral 4i comprises the central hub 42 having an upper shredding surface as 43 secured to the hub. A lug 44 engages a notch 45 in the upper end of the shaft 22 to securely lock the shredder element 4| to the shaft 22. The shredder element is further provided with an outwardly flaring corrugated skirt 46. The webs of the shredder element 43 are corrugated as at d? and in this manner an uneven shredding surface has been devised.

A cylindrical flanged screen 48 is secured to the plate 3i through the engagement of the bayonet slots as 49, in the ilange 50, with the pin headed bosses 36 thus forming a pulp discharge passage. The rotatable screen 48 is provided with a perforated area and an upward,

. inwardly ilaring edge 52. The upper terminal end of the spiral 40 is extended laterally andby means of the twisted portion i3 a scraper is provided for close engagement with an inward flare B2 of the rotating screen.

The cylindrical housing I4 encioses the operating mechanism of my invention and is secured to the housing l2 by means of L-shaped slots B5 engaging retaining pins B6 on the housing i2. 'I'he interior of the housing B4 has an inner sloping cup flange 51 terminating in a liquid discharge spout 5I.

In the upper face 59 of the housing 54 and to one side oi' the center thereof is the feed .tube

l0 through which material to be shredded may be fed. The corrugated surface 8i is secured to the underside of the housing and in close proximity to the shredder element 4l. An outward, circular flaring flange B2 depends from the underside of the housing top 59 and completely encircles the corrugated skirt 4B of the shredder element. in relatively close proximity. The skirt or ange 6! may be corrugated similar to the skirt 4I. A presser block 63 is inserted into the tube Il and may be extracted therefrom by means of the nob `M. One side of the housing bt has an' elongated slot il adjacent the discharge end ,of the plate 3l and the'discharge hood it@ covers the slot 8l for reasons to be later described.

Under certain circumstances the corrugated surface 43 of the shredder may be formed by punching or drawing metal substantially-as is shown in Figures 2 and 3. In Figure i I have indicated a section of an alternate screen which in certain details is similar to standard wire mesh, but which, it is to be pointed out, varies in the manner in which the wires are crossed to f shredding corrugations.

An angular-ly bent cross wire 'il is inte .t at spaced points by wires 'H and l2. It will be noted that between a pmr or wires, as li and ld, there is a pair oi' bands as 13 and 13a fo an extr rough shredding surface. Under cerf. wf.: thewireas Il or'ii mi 75 mis-sha danse di where it is spherical in cross section and this hemispherical shape may also be utilized in the members 41 forming parts oi the pressed metal shredder of Figure 3.

Suitable rubber cushion buttons 15 are secured to the underside of the'base I0 of my device for the purpose of deadening any vibration that may arise for the protection of table surfaces upon which the device may be placed or operated.

Method of Operation The device of Figure l is mounted upon a suitable working surface and the cord I5 is connected to an electrical outlet means to the end that the motor I3 is started in operation. Through the means of the pulleys i6 and I9, the belts 21 and 28 and the pulleys 23 and 25, the revolving elements of my shredder and extractor are caused to rotate within the housing 54. 'I'he plug 63 is Withdrawn from the feed tube @a and whole or partially cut vegetables are inserted into the hole. The plug 63 is re-inserted into the feed tube in order that pressure may be applied upon the material being shredded.

The best operation of my device has been accomplished when the shaft 22 which operates to revolve the shredder and the spiral scraper blade is rotated at a relatively high speed and to a degree in excess of the speed imparted upon the centrifugal screen bowl.

The bottom surface of the material being fed into the tube d@ is contacted by the corrugated shredder surface d@ and because of the roundness of the corrugated webs the impact of the shredder webs upon the material crushes, b, and disrupts the cells to such a ine degree that there is left no whole lcell in the resulting Dull?.

The material falls downward through the interstices of the shredder and is either deposited upon the rotating spiral scraper blade, or thrown outwardly against the flange Eid which is a part 'of the perforated centrifugal separator in which instance the scraper portion 63 of the spiral et scrapes the material downwardly and into contact with the perforations. The revolutions imparted to the disk di and the spaced perforated bowl liti .cause the material to adhere to the inner surface of the bowl against the perforations, but because of the centrifugal action the water content or juice is thrown outward through the screen. Due to the speed diierential on the shafts 2i and 22 there is a differential between the rotary scraper and the spinner 3i, and perforated bowl whereby although the two are revolving in the same direction, the spiral tends to the www bowl and time the pulp material clinging to the inner surface of the bowl downwardly and acme Athe perforated area to the bottom edge of the bowl formed by the iienge Eid.

Due to the fact that the ange it@ is sepa Ifrom the umn cuter periphery of theplate di by means oi spacing it will be 4werent that the dehydrated pulp material gathers in this passage, out against the inner periphery of the housing 5d. When of the plate di passes the :f-. slot 6E the dehydrated material is I f1 n 1 Outward t the hood @d which ds to d it downward into a suitable container that might be provi or umn the table.

Juice which is mwa ontw through the screen usually st upon the inner surface ci the ho bd and hows downward to the any point on the riphery led by means of the incline, indicated by the dotted lines in the drawings, to the discharge spout il and thence to suitable containers.

In some instances it has beennoticed that when the piece of material being shredded has been grounded very thin, there is a tendency for the tractor bowl, means for rotating said spiral shredder element to pick up this piece and carry it in its rotary motion. To overcome this I have provided the corrugated under-surface of the housing so that these relatively thin pieces will likewise be reduced to pulp between the shredding surfaces 43 and 8l. Occasionally these pieces pass to the outward periphery of the shred der element Il and lodge against the flange 61. The iluted or corrugated skirt now acts upon these pieces to further reduce them and throw them downward into the separator basket.

When it is desired to clean the device, the operator grasps the cover housing Il between his hands and imparts a horizontal turning motion to the cover which turns upon the pins 58. When the cover has reached its limit of travel, which is regulated by the L-shaped slot I5, the cover may be lifted oil' the device and washed in a container or under a spray. The shredder element 4I is disengaged from the shaft 22 by pulling it upwardly and off the end of the shaft.

A key 3l in the bushing 3l is removed from engagement through the shaft 22 and the centrifugal, perforated bowl 48, and the spiral scraper blade Il may be lifted upwardly and withdrawn from the shaft. By turning the centrifugal bowl 4I in a counterclockwise direction upon the pin headed bosses the bowl may be separata! from the plate Il, thus permitting the extraction of the spiral scraper element from the interior of the centrifugal bowl. It will be washing in any suitable manner. For re-assembling the elements a reverse process is followed and the device is ntted together as it appears in Figure 2.

In certain instances it has been found necessary and advisable to alter the details of the shredding surface of the rotating shredder to handle certain fruits upon which my principles of extraction are to be operated. I therefore do not wish to be bound by the exact details of the disclosure herewith.

Having thus fully illustrated and described my invention, what I claim as new` and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. In a juice extractor, a perforated vertically rotatable extracting cylinder having a supporting bottom rotatable therewith, a spiral feeder rotatable within said cylinder, a shredder rotatable independent of said cylinder and feeding thereto, means for rotating said extracting cylinder` means for rotating said spiral feeder and said shredder at a speed differential to saidextractlng cylinder, and a casing enclosing said rotatable elements.

2. In a juice extractor, a vertically rotatable extractor bowl comprising a lower spinner plate,

a perforated cylinder having an outwardhr ex' tending flange on the lower portion thereof,r

means for securing said cylinder to said spinner plate in spaced relation thereto, a spiral feeder rotatable within said cylinder, a shredder rotatable independently of said extractor bowl and discharging thereto, means for rotating said exfeeder and said shredder at a speed differential to said rotatable extractor bowl, and housing means enclosing said rotatable elements.

3. In a juice extractor, a vertically rotatable extractor bowl comprising a base plate, a perforated cylinder above said base plate, means for supporting said cylinder in spaced relation to said base plate, a spiral feeder rotatable within said cylinder, a rotatable shredder feeding into said` extractor cylinder, means for rotating said extractor bowl, means for rotating the spiral scraper and said shredder at a speed differential to said extractorbowl, and a casing enclosing said rotatable elements, said casing including a juice collecting trough and also being provided with a pulp discharge opening aligned with the space between the base plate and the perforated cylinder supported thereabove.

4. In a juice extractor, a vertically rotatable perforated extractor cylinder, downwardly acting pulp feeding means within said cylinder, a frusto-conical shredder element rotatable in the upper mouth of said cylinder and independently thereof, said shredder comprising an upper web surface and an outwardly and downwardly ilaring iiuted skirt, means for rotating said extractor cylinder, means for rotating said shredder at a speed differential to said cylinder, and a casing enclosing said rotatable elements.

5. In a juice extractor, a vertically rotatable extractor bowl comprising a perforated cylinder having an upper inwardly converging edge and a lower exterior flange, a spinner plate for supporting said perforate cylinder, a plurality of bosses spaced around the periphery of said spinner plate and engaging the flange of the cylinder to lock the cylinder and the plate in spaced relation to each other to form a pulp discharge passage, means for rotating said spinner plate, a screw feed scraper rotatable within said cylinder, a shredder rotatable in the upper portion of said cylinder and comprising an upper corrugated web surface and an outward and downward flaring and fluted skirt, means for rotating said screw feed scraper and said shredder at a speed differential to said rotatable extraction cylinder, a casing enclosing said rotatable elements. said casing having interior means for the collection and discharge of juice, said casing also having means associated with said pulp discharge passage to retard the discharge of pulp therefrom and to permit the discharge of pulp at a predetermined point in the path defined by the rotatable extractor cylinder.

6. In a juice extractor, a vertical hollow shaft, a perforated extractor cylinder fixed to said shaft, means for rotating said shaft, an inner shaft within said hollow shaft, a spiral feeder ilxed to the inner shaft and operable against the inner face of the extractor cylinder, a shredder secured to the inner shaft, means for rotating said inner shaft at a speed differential to said hollow shaft, a housing enclosing said extractor cylinder and said shredder and adapted to collect and discharge juice extracted by said cylinder, said housing also having a pulp dis.

charge opening cooperating with the extractor cylinder, and a feed tube associated with said housing to.one side of the axis of rotation of said shredder for the introduction of raw material to the shredder.

CLINTON G. KEITH. 

